Democrats need to do 'down home'

Their 'Pledge' is an economically illiterate re-tread, but it doesn't matter: Republicans talk to Main Street in a way Democrats don't

Making the Pledge: house minority leader John Boehner unveils a new Republican governing agenda for the next congress at a press conference held in a lumber mill, Virginia, 23 September 2010. Photograph: EPA/Shawn Thew
Shawn Thew/EPA

At a small gathering in Georgetown last week, Chuck Schumer, senior senator of New York state (and a strong contender to be next senate majority leader), discussed the potential of a Democratic disaster at the ballot box this November. He, like me, remains optimistic. But he also focused on a fundamental Democratic problem when it comes to elections, and particularly these midterms: the party doesn't talk to voters. At least, in a way that appeals to them, that captures their imaginations and frustrations.

It's undeniable that Democrats have done more for the middle class in the last two years than any president in generations has done in eight years of office. Healthcare reform. Tax cuts for struggling businesses. Extended unemployment benefit. The stimulus bill. Financial reform. Equal pay legislation. Reining in credit card abuses. Strengthening voting rights. The policy record could hardly be more impressive.

But as one senior White House correspondent told me this weekend, "Democrats think good policy is the same as good politics." In other words, the party relies on their policy achievements to speak for themselves. Sadly, that's not enough to sway many voters at the ballot box. Americans – though hardly alone in this trait – have a sad history of voting against their own interests. Think of the remarkable re-election of President Bush in 2004; much of his support came from the poorest of Americans whose interest he definitively did not serve, with the richer getting tax cuts and the poorest getting, well, cuts in pretty much every social benefit they needed.

The problem is best illustrated by the recent "Main Street" appeal of the Republican party's leadership, as they do their best to capture both their moderate base and the populism (extremism) of this year's Tea Party enthusiasm. Last week, they presented their "Pledge toAmerica" – a policy manifesto they had the audacity to compare itself to the declaration of independence and the constitution itself.

Obviously, this was a barely disguised version of Gingrich's much more substantive "Contract with America". But this Republican pledge didn't only lack substance. It was packed with downright fantasy.

The pledge is rife with condemnations of the budget deficit. Yet, practically the only identifiable legislative suggestion is to extend Bush tax cuts for the rich – at a cost of over $3.5tn. And – as the New York Times's Paul Krugman points out – the only spending cut actually proposed is cancelling the Troubled Asset Relief Programme (a Republican baby), which would save less than half of 1% of the money needed for the tax giveaway for the top 1% of Americans. In essence, the message for anyone who cares to scratch the surface of the proposals is this: deficits are bad – let's make this one bigger.

But the substance of the pledge, as absurd and flimsy as it is, is beside the point. Certainly, politicians talk a big game during election periods, but Republicans have no problem downright lying about what they can deliver.

And yet it works. It appeals to voters. Their promises (in this case, delivered in a lumber yard) aren't based on reality, but they do provide a great platform for "down home" rhetoric. Language Americans understand and relate to.

Democrats, on the other hand, are so old-fashioned. Their rhetoric is based on the truth. Absolutely, Democrats were the original masters of message delivery during Clinton's first presidential campaign. But they're much better-off attacking than they are defending their record, as they are forced to do this year. That's because, time and again, they make the mistake of touting real policies at the expense of actually talking and listening to voters. Hence the old Republican charge that Democrats are out-of-touch, elitist and believe they know better than voters what is in America's best interests.

In reality, Democrats are just bad at explaining how they're working for voters.

Of course, part of this is down to a rushed and pressured press corps, driven by ratings to cover political theatre, rather than analyse policy. But that reflects the proclivity of their viewers, and it's a dynamic that isn't going to change anytime soon. Democrats have now acknowledged that media imbalance, and rarely whine about it. But they still do little to play it themselves.

President Obama's soaring rhetoric and professorial style is unprecedented, impressive and uplifting for many of us. It was more than refreshing during the presidential campaign, and had a great appeal in itself. But now, with an economy on the brink and nearly 10% of Americans out of work, it's not what voters want to hear. At least, not right now.

A good example: in a recent televised forum, a questioner, Velma Hart, (later described by Fox News as an American hero) told the president that she was tired of defending him, that this wasn't the kind of change she had voted for. Rather than sympathising with her, asking about her plight, telling her he understood, Obama recited a list of policy achievements that should – in theory – have benefited her.

This missed the point. Those policy achievements have been lost on her – and millions of Americans. What they want is sympathy and a sense of momentum. What they're getting is a litany of achievements that haven't kicked in yet.

And so, they're prey to the Republican ruse of painting this administration as the greatest government over-reach in generations. It's a simple, compelling narrative that voters can get behind. They need to blame someone. Government is a good target.

The good news is that the Republican "big government" hypocritical fear-mongering will not work forever. The economy will pick up. Government will again be seen as force of change for the better. But for now, voters are listening. And all they're hearing is the beat of the Republican drum. Government out. Democrats out. Republicans in. It's that simple and digestible.

So, Democrats, stop for a moment explaining what you've done, and just listen and talk to what you hear. It might just save your seat in congress.